We all know what time of year it is: tax time. Winter taxes will be due pretty soon, and over the last few weeks you should have received your 2015 tax assessment. This form should tell you what your new state equalized value is and what your taxable value is.

Know that 90% of the form they send you is irrelevant - it has no bearing or effect on your taxes.

There is one box to look at: it's going to tell you what your new taxes are, what your new value is, what your taxable value is, and what your homestead percentage is. If you are living in a primary residence, please check to make sure your homestead percentage is 100%.

Why should you check homestead percentage? If it's not 100%, you may be paying more in taxes than you have to. If you see your percentage is under 100%, give us a call. We will fill out the proper forms and petition the city on your behalf. In one case, we were able to help a client claim around $5,500 in excess taxes paid to the city. By doing this, your tax rate will be lowered and you may be able to get some money back from the city as well.

On the back of the tax assessment form, the dates and times that you can petition the city will be listed. Yearly, about 400 people will petition the city because they feel the value placed on their property is incorrect. Of those 400 people, over 350 saw a reduction in taxes. The savings range from $25 to several thousand dollars a year.

When it comes to petitioning taxes, the city assessor will not look at appraisals, bank-owned sales, or short sales. They will look at comparable properties to come up with a fair assessment. Take a look at your form and determine whether you want to petition your taxes. We offer this as a free service to all of our past clients, so it's only a matter of reaching out to us and letting us do what we do best.

Reply to this email or give us a call at any time for help petitioning for a lower tax rate. In 2013, we helped just over 300 families fight their taxes at the city assessor's office, which resulted in over $100,000 saved!

If you have any questions about your new taxes, or fighting your taxes, please don't hesitate to reach out to us. We would love to help you save some money this year!